Water circulation systems such as pond water circulation systems, fish tanks, waterfalls, and the like, typically utilize a pump and a filter to circulate the water. Most filters on the market today have water being pumped into a canister by an electric pump. The canister has a filtering medium therein. The water circulates through the filtering medium and back to the pond or other water body. To clean the filtering medium, it is necessary to open the canister, reach into an algae-infested medium, which may contain dirt and fish waste, remove the medium and manually clean the medium. The filtering medium must then be returned back to the canister. These chores make for an unpleasant but necessary task. Failure to keep the filter clean eventually causes the circulation system to clog, and/or the fish to die. The filter canister usually includes other components that must be cleaned such as the diffuser which directs the water to be filtered over the filter. However, prior art diffusers often are formed with a plurality of flow holes for performing this function. Over time, algae grows in the flow holes thereby decreasing their diameter until the flow holes eventually plug due to algae growth or debris. These prior art diffusers must be cleaned regularly or the circulation system will fail and the fish will die.
The system typically also includes an electric pump that is typically located within the water and regardless of placement, has an intake for water. The water intake should not become clogged or plugged with leaves, debris, or other matter or the pump can be quickly destroyed. A significant expense related to ponds is the cost of replacement pumps. When the pump quits, the replacement must occur fairly soon to keep the fish alive.
Various attempts have been made in the prior art to solve the above indicated problems and/or related problems. However, the prior art devices and methods have numerous drawbacks. Patents related to such attempts include the following:
U.S. Pat. No. 6,110,389, issued Aug. 29, 2000, to A. Horowitz, discloses a filtration tank for purification of polluted water which includes a chamber. Upper and lower filtration screens are supported within the chamber. Filtration particles are confined between the upper and lower screens. Polluted water enters the chamber through an inlet, passes through the screens and the filtration particles and exits the chamber through a purified water outlet. Periodically, the inlet and outlet are closed and the water in the chamber is drained through a drain outlet. Nozzles spray cleaning fluid over the filter particles and screens to dislodge trapped dirt.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,356,541, issued Oct. 18, 1994, to B. Wickzell, discloses a method and filter arrangement for filtering particle-contaminated liquid which is caused to spill onto the upper side of a filter. Spray pipes, equipped with nozzles, are rotatably mounted beneath the filter, and spray flushing liquid against the underside of the filter. A drainage channel, mounted above the filter surface, catches and directs some of the particle carrying liquid to the outlet. The drainage channel has an extended portion which forms a channel inlet and also functions as a splash guard.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,608,910, issued Sep. 2, 1952, to J. McCrystle, discloses a method for operating a flat screen for screening fibrous materials which consists essentially of the following steps: preparing a suspension of fibers, flowing the suspension over the screen, introducing positive jet streams of water under pressure at an angle less than seventy-five degrees to the plane of the screen onto the input side of the screen, and introducing the streams so that the entire opening areas of the screen are directly, wholly, and simultaneously subjected to the action thereof.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,431,541, issued Feb. 14, 1984, to A. Lee, discloses a circular filter having separated inlet and outlet compartments such that cheese whey or the like is pumped into the vessel, is forced across a filter screen, and the filtered whey is discharged downstream for further processing. This invention incorporates two rotating showers to clean the filter and an outlet valve which recycles filtered whey for additional filtering and cleaning.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,889,048, issued Jun. 2, 1959, to O. L. Nordic, discloses a strainer adapted to collect solid material including a cleaning nozzle, a strainer screen surrounding the nozzle, a rotatable shaft having a portion thereof offset with respect to the shaft, means connecting the offset portion of the shaft to the nozzle, the shaft and the nozzle having a fluid passage therein for conducting fluid through the shaft to the nozzle for discharge from the nozzle at high pressure upon the surface of the screen.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,573,671, issued Nov. 12, 1996, to H. Klein, discloses a biological purification process wherein a secondary treatment of partially cleaned waste water for example, is carried out in a porous bed of loose granules which float in the liquid. The granules are continuously washed to remove coagulated impurities by means of a small quantity thereof being entrained from the top of the bed in a small volume flow of the effluent of the process, mixed with the inflowing impure liquid and then returned to the bottom of the bed. Excess reaction gas may also be delivered to the bed via the inflowing liquid and unreacted gas collected for reuse.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,463,943 B1, issued Oct. 15, 2002, to D. Monroe, discloses a swimming pool filter cleaning device including a cylindrical ring-like housing having an upper end, a lower end, an inner surface and an outer surface defining a central opening. The housing has a hollow interior. The housing is dimensioned for receiving a cylindrical pool filter within the central opening thereof. The housing has a water hose connector extending outwardly from the inner surface thereof. The water hose connector is in communication with the hollow interior. The water hose connector has an open outer end adapted for coupling with a standard water hose. A first set of spray nozzles is disposed within the upper end of the housing in a spaced relationship. The first set of spray nozzles is in communication with the hollow interior of the housing.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,374,360, issued Dec. 20, 1994, to R. J. Weis, discloses a method and apparatus for cleaning a filter apparatus of the type having an atmospherically vented tank, a rotatable filter frame in the tank having filter material thereon providing one or more filter effluent compartments on the filter frame. An influent line supplies liquid containing suspended solids to the tank and a filtered effluent outlet communicates with the filter effluent compartment, and a spray wash device including spray nozzles is operable during a wash cycle to direct high pressure liquid spray at a side of the filter material on the filter frame in a spray zone. An air tight hood is mounted inside the tank and extends above the upper periphery of the filter frame to an open lower end below the spray zone. The hood is vented to atmosphere during a filter time to allow liquid influent in the tank to flow into the hood and immerse the filter frame, and air is supplied to the hood during the wash cycle at a pressure sufficient to pneumatically depress the liquid in the hood to a level below the spray zone.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,945,005, issued Aug. 31, 1999, to Junius et al., discloses a filter system which includes a tank with a conveyer for, preferably continuously, conveying filter media from a filter zone in the tank where the filter media traps predetermined matter, such as particulates, to a quiet zone in the tank where the predetermined matter separates from the filter media and is allowed to accumulate and be withdrawn from the tank. The conveyer preferably includes a screw auger and a duct for containing the screw auger. The filter media is preferably buoyant when the fluid being filtered is water.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,672,281, issued Sep. 30,1997, to Bums et al., discloses an apparatus and method for separating an effluent into a filtered liquid component and a concentrated sludge component. A screen for filtering the effluent is positioned to divide a chamber into two compartments, one for concentrating sludge and one for receiving filtered liquid. The screen is curved in an arc that extends away from the liquid outlet, and a spray arm is mounted for arcuate motion to conform to the curvature of the screen to dispense a fluid against the screen to dislodge attached sludge, to unclog the screen apertures.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,162,219, issued Jul. 24, 1979, to Miropolsky et al., discloses a self-cleaning filter for purifying a liquid from suspended particles which has a housing with pipes for the inlet of the liquid to be purified and for the outlet of the clarified liquid, accommodating at least one filtering partition dividing the internal space of the housing into chambers for the liquid to be purified and for the clarified liquid, and means for flushing this partition with a countercurrent of the clarified liquid. The inlet pipe for the liquid to be purified is arranged on the housing within the chamber for the clarified liquid so that its geometric axis is substantially parallel with the plane of the filtering partition and communicates with another pipe received in the chamber for the clarified liquid so that its geometric axis extends centrally of this chamber, substantially perpendicular to the plane of the filtering partition, the latter having made therein an opening the edges whereof are connected to said another pipe. The disclosed filter is characterized by reliable performance and relatively simple structure.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,268,095, issued Dec. 7, 1993, to Ytzhak Barzuza, discloses a self-cleaning filter including a filter housing having at least a raw-liquid inlet and a clean-liquid outlet, and a filter medium interposed between the raw-liquid inlet and the clean-liquid outlet. At least one nozzle is located in proximity to the filter medium and is connectable to at least two different sources of pressure, one of which is higher than the pressure prevailing in the filter, the other one being lower than the pressure prevailing in the filter. There is also provided an arrangement to produce a relative movement between the filter medium and the at least one nozzle to the effect of having a substantial part of the surface area of the filter medium covered by the nozzle.
The above cited prior art does not provide a suitable means for reliably and automatically removing debris for a pond filter or pump. Consequently, there has been a long felt but unsolved need to provide improved and more reliable apparatus and methods that result in continuous circulation of water with minimal or no maintenance. Those of skill in the art will greatly appreciate the present invention which addresses the above problems and other problems.